@fictitiousdinosaur I’m not sure if anyone has said it yet - but some people just have small babies! My daughter was born full term (40 weeks on the dot) and came out at 6 lb 3 oz. My current baby is measuring on the small side as well. If your doctor isn’t concerned, try not to make yourself too upset.
Also wanted to note what many others have - the scans are not super accurate! All of mine come with the disclaimer that they could be off in either direction by two weeks gestational age!
@fictitiousdinosaur Those scans can be really inaccurate! They told me my baby was going to be gigantic (think like high 90s for percentile), they actually wanted to induce me early because of it. When he was born, he was totally average size (came on his own, not induced early).
@fictitiousdinosaur My daughter was measuring 7lbs 6oz the week I was induced and she came out 9lbs with a giant head! In my case the scans were way off.
@fictitiousdinosaur 12% is still considered normal! 10% to 90% is normal range. I’m a high risk OB nurse and we see a lot of women with small babies and more often than not they’re just normal healthy babies that happen to be petite. If your baby does go below 10% they’ll most likely want to monitor you more often, usually an ultrasound and NST once a week until delivery. My doctors don’t even talk about early induction unless baby is less than 3%.
@fictitiousdinosaur That I can’t really speak to since I’m not a provider. Sometimes discrepancies like that don’t really mean anything, sometimes babies just have shorter legs and smaller heads than average for example. My daughter’s AC was small for a while and it didn’t end up meaning anything. But I think you should definitely talk with your doctor about it to see if anything looks concerning to them!
@fictitiousdinosaur My baby measured 12th percentile with a 1st percentile abdomen, 5th percentile head, and 76th percentile femur length at 37 weeks. We were induced at 38 weeks to be on the safe side since there was a chance he just wasn’t thriving inside me anymore, although blood flow through the umbilical cord, amniotic fluid levels, heart rate, kick counts and the NST were all fine. I was totally freaked out and honestly devastated that my body didn’t feel like the safest place for him anymore but he made it through labor just fine, is doing great on the outside and gained a solid two pounds in his first month. I also think I overestimated the visible difference between percentiles and thought he would come out looking super disproportional and/or sickly thin and that wasn’t the case at all - he was small (6 lbs 1 oz) but still perfectly baby shaped lol.
@fictitiousdinosaur As long as your provider wasn't concerned, I wouldn't be too concerned. Scans are wildly inaccurate - especially as the baby gets bigger. That being said, 12% isn't bad?? Unless baby's size dramatically decreased suddenly and you're worried about it from that aspect. But being 12th percentile - if that's true - is just the fact that someone has to fall in that range of size.
They estimated that my second was going to be 6.5lbs a week before I had her and she ended up being 7.5lbs. She's now in the 12th percentile for growth overall.
@allglorytogod77 I am meeting with my OB tomorrow. We are doing a non stress test but she said since blood flow/fluid/movement are ok not to be too concerned.
Do you think its wacky that the head is so small and the abdomen is so big? wondering if babys posiiton affects this?
@fictitiousdinosaur Not the exact same, but mine are opposite. 95% percentile head and like 22% abdomen and femur which google says has its own problems . I totally understand the worry but I’ve just had to trust the doctor as they have no concerns at all related to his sizing/measurements. I’ve had to practice just trusting unless I have a gut feeling or something else that doesn’t feel right that I need to push on. I know it’s hard though.
@jason5431 thank you for sharing! just hard to feel like it isnt "all my fault" that he isnt huge. like i should have gained more weight or something...
@fictitiousdinosaur I would say keep focused on what many are saying here - average is just that - whatever the middle is. And to have a middle, we have to have upper and lower values that we then mathematically arrive at a center value. I have several friends who gave birth in January and February who had very tiny babies - perfectly healthy. And I have friends who gave birth last year or years prior who had larger ones - also healthy. You have done great
I definitely understand your concern but truthfully, the angle could make all the difference as you noted. Hopefully you're getting some reassurance today.
@fictitiousdinosaur Had my growth scan a week ago and head was measuring 34.5 weeks. Abdomen, however, was measuring 38.5 weeks so huuuuge difference between head size and belly size for my little guy. OB didn’t seem concerned at all.
. I totally understand the worry but I’ve just had to trust the doctor as they have no concerns at all related to his sizing/measurements. I’ve had to practice just trusting unless I have a gut feeling or something else that doesn’t feel right that I need to push on. I know it’s hard though.
so huuuuge difference between head size and belly size for my little guy. OB didn’t seem concerned at all.